UbiDays 08: Shaun White Snowboarding (Wii)

Being developed alongside Shaun White Snowboarding is a separate title for the Wii, and it uses the *gasp* Balance Board. This is a definite score.

Of course, this Shaun White Snowboarding game will be different from its siblings. This one doesnâ€™t have the free-roaming environments; it’s event-centric. The premise is simple: Players go on a road trip with White across snowboarding hot spots like Canada, Chile, Europe, Japan and Park City, Utah.

Each new course has a different emphasis and thereâ€™s also a filming element involved that could give players a boost in the game.

But I know, I know, folks want to know how the game controls with the Balance Board, and I have to say it looked fairly intuitive. Teri Osbourne, the international brand manager for the game, was demoing it at UbiDays event, and she looked like she got the hang of it.

Players shift their weight as they hurtle down the slopes. They hold the Wii remote to do some grabs by pressing the A button. Performing a Hula Hoop motion lets players do more specialized tricks like a 360. Overall, thereâ€™s about 30 to 40 tricks in the game.

From what Iâ€™ve seen, Shaun White Snowboarding for the Wii looks promising, and with the Balance Board, this could bring a new level of immersion to the extreme sports genre. If it handles as well or better than the snowboarding minigame in Wii Fit, then this could be one of the most compelling extreme sports games to come out this year.